Walking holidays in Slovenia

Tiny Slovenia, at the northern end of former Yugoslavia, is a Slav country with a delightful admixture of German and Italian influences. From Austrian domination it emerged after the first world war as a willing partner in the new Yugoslavia and represented the stereotypical hard-working western European element in an otherwise more easygoing Balkan culture. It was the first country to achieve independence during the breakup of Yugoslavia, and is now a strong voice in the EU.

This in a country that is beautiful too. Our route eschews its well-known mountains for the Karst: a rolling landscape of vineyards, little villages and considerable Italian influence. It also ends in the (now) Italian seaport of Trieste (with a considerable Slovene-speaking population) and thus binds the country to its original maritime outlet once more.